AMO Add-on Maintenance Policies

Submitting New Versions of Your Add-on

Developers are encouraged to submit updates to their add-ons to fix bugs, add features, and otherwise improve their product. New versions of an add-on must have a higher version number and can be submitted through the Developer Tools provided. There is no limit to the number of versions that can be submitted, but please remember that versions must be reviewed by an editor.

New versions will be added to a pending review queue, and any additional versions submitted before the review is completed will move that version to the end of the queue.

How do I submit a Beta add-on?

Beta channels are only available to fully-reviewed add-ons.

To create a beta channel, upload a file with a unique version string that contains any of the following strings: a,b,alpha,beta,pre,rc, with an optional number at the end. This text must come at the end of the version string. If you understand regex format, here's what we look for in the version number: "(a|alpha|b|beta|pre|rc)\d*$".

Once a file meeting this criteria is uploaded to AMO, it will automatically be marked as a beta version. Users of add-ons with these unique version numbers will automatically be served the newest beta updates.

While we call these "Beta versions", you can use this channel for nightlies, or alphas, or prerelease versions as you wish. Please note that there is only one channel for this purpose and all of your users on this channel will receive the latest add-ons submitted. For instance, if you upload 1.0beta1 to the release channel and then upload 1.1alpha1, all users of 1.0beta1 will be offered an upgrade to 1.1alpha1. Updates are pushed by submission date and not version number, so users will always get the most recent channel update regardless of any kind of alphabetical sorting.

Required Updates

Certain situations may arise in which Mozilla requests that an add-on developer update their add-on within a given time period to address a major security issue or policy violation. We work with developers to reasonably accommodate their own schedules, but if the issue is of a serious enough nature, add-ons that cannot issue an update with the requested fix may be demoted from fully-reviewed status, disabled, or permanently removed from the site.

Transfer of Ownership

Add-ons can have multiple users with permission to update and manage the listing. Existing authors of an add-on can transfer ownership and add additional developers to an add-on's listing through the Developer Tools provided. No interaction with Mozilla representatives is necessary for a transfer of ownership.

Mozilla can assist with granting additional permissions of an add-on's listing if contacted by the add-on's current owner.

User Reviews

Mozilla encourages its users to offer feedback on their experiences when using an add-on. This allows other users to determine if the add-on is stable and useful. It also provides valuable feedback to developers, allowing them to continuously improve their add-on to meet user needs.

Reviews must follow the review guidelines. Reviews that do not meet these guidelines may be flagged for moderation, but negative reviews will not be removed unless they provide false information.

Many developers provide a support mechanism, such as a forum, discussion group, or email address. It is recommended that support questions be posted via those mediums instead of in an add-on's review section.

Code Disputes

Many add-ons allow their source code to be openly viewed. This does not mean that the source code is open source or available for use in another add-on. The original author of an add-on retains copyright of their work unless otherwise noted in the add-on's license.

In the event that we're notified of a copyright or license infringement, we will take steps to review the situation and determine if an actual infringement has occurred. If we determine that there is an infringement, we will remove the offending add-on and contact the author. New add-on submissions (including updates) containing infringing code will be denied approval for public status.

If you are unsure of the current copyright status of an add-on's source code, you must contact the original author and receive explicit permission before using the source code.

Last updated: January 13, 2011

Add-on updates, transferring ownership, user reviews, and what to expect once your add-on is approved.